1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of free stalls for cattle, and more particularly, is directed to a portable type of free stall that may be placed within a building without requiring any permanent connection to the building structural members.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventional free stall constructions are generally fabricated of pipe or high strength tubing to provide individual beds or stalls of adequate size to allow full size cattle to lie down. Footings are provided at the bottom of the upright portions of the structural pipe members in well known manner and these footings together with the lower portions of the pipes are usually embedded directly in the concrete floor when the free stall barn is being constructed and the concrete floor is poured. Thus, the prior art free stalls became a permanent fixture within the barn and were incapable of being moved. Conventionally, a free stall barn comprises two rows of stalls facing toward the outside walls of the barn with a common walkway between the rows for passage by the cattle. Concrete curbs define the marginal edges of the walk and serve the common purposes of containing the manure within the walk and of providing a barrier to hold the bedding within the stalls wherein the cattle lie down.
The typical free stall barn construction most often utilizes an expensive inner wall design to make up the front of the stalls and also to serve as a barrier to keep the bedding from coming in contact with the outer siding of the barn. Because of the embedding of the free stall piping within the floor and because of the inner wall construction and design, a free stall barn is usually a single purpose building that cannot be easily or inexpensively renovated or which cannot be altered to any other type of use.
Frequently, the embedded portions of the pipe construction of the presently available free stalls have a relatively short life span. Quite often, the piping or high strength tubing becomes broken, corroded or otherwise deteriorated at floor level due to the inherent nature of the activities carried on within a free stall barn. Conventional welding practices to repair the severed or broken pipe can only be carried on with utmost care. Even when extreme care is exercized, there is still an extremely dangerous situation. Due to the necessary presence of considerable quantities of bedding all about the inside of a barn, the sparks from a welder's torch will always present a considerable fire hazard.